Grouser



R. c. HAWKINS GROUSER Filed July 9. 1925 Patented Mar. 22, 1927.

UNITED STATES 1,622,111 PATENT orricn.

ROE C.I-IAWKINS, LONG BEACH, CALIFORNIA, ASSIGNOR TO H H MANUFAC- TURERS, INQ, 0F LONG BEACH, CALIFORNIA, A CORPORATION-OF CALIFORNIA.

GROUSER.

Application filed my 9,

My invention is a grouser adapted to be attached to thetractor wheels of a farm tractor or similar machine and is adapted to form a readily removable or if desired a permanent grouser.

The grouser illustrated is particularly designed to fit on the wheel of the Fordson tractor and to clamp to the present cleats which extend crosswise in a diagonalydirection of the rim of the wheel. My grouser. has a pair of-concave faced lugs connected by a web formed at an angle to the faces of the lugs for attachment to a cleat. The grouser is specially designed to penetrate hard soil and to also give sufficient traction in sand or mud, and on account of the concave faces does not clog with mud or adobe.

My invention will be more readily understood from the following description and drawings in which:

Figure 1 is a perspective elevation of a tractor Wheel with my grouser attached thereto. a

Fig. 2 is a plan view of one of the grousers attached to a cleat taken in the direction of the arrow 2 of Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is an end elevation of the outside edge of the grouser taken in the direction of the arrow 3 of Fig. 2.

Fig. 4 is an elevation of a section of the tractor wheel viewed in the direction of the arrow 6 of Fig. 1, showing the action of the grouser in entering and leaving the soil.

Fig. 5 is a plan View of an alternative form in which the grousers are in the form of double lugs without a connecting web.

In the drawings, a tractor wheel is designated generally by the numeral 1 and has secured to its face, cleats 2, having a flat web 3 bolted to the rim 4 of the wheel and having an outstanding flange 5 with bolt holes 6 therein.

The grouser has two projecting lugs 8 and 9 and a web section 10' therebetween. The rear face of the lugs and the web are formed with a plain surface 11 adapted to fit the flange of the cleats. As these cleats are placed on the tractor wheel at an angle the faces 12 and 13 of the lugs are formed to make substantially a right angle with the rim of the'wheel, that is, with the direction of travel of the tractor. The end walls 14 and 15 are therefore considerably wider than the side Wall 16 of the outside lug. A recess 17 is formed in the face of the lug 8 and a recess 18 in the rear wall 15 of the lug 9.

1925. Serial No. 42,461..

These recesses are to accommodate theheads 19 of the bolts 20 secured through the bolt holes 6 and thus clamp the grousers securely to the cleats.

My grouser is made with a fairly sharp cutting-edge 21 at the extreme outside of the lugs, the base 22 fitting against the rim of the wheel is of considerable widthto properly transmit the pressure to the wheel rim without cracking same. The faces 12 and 13 are made concave, the upper portion 23 being curved on the radius of a much larger diameter than the lower portion 24 so as to give a relatively sharp curve and form an acute angle 25 where the tip of the lugmeets the rim of the wheel.

The manner of attachment of the grouser will be apparent from the above description and as the bolts are readily accessible the grousers may be quickly detached from the cleats or may be left permanently attached thereto. 1

The action of the grousers in operation will be more readily apparent from Fig. 1 in which the soil is designated generally by the numeral 26, 27 being the surface thereof. The tractor is moving forward and it will be noticed that a leading grouser 28 projects somewhat forward of the tip 25 of the base of the grouser and cuts into hard soil on account of the sharp cutting edge 21, compacting the soil on the curved concave face as indicated by the numeral 29. Ifany soil should have clogged on the grouser lugs, it is forced off by the compressing action of the soil. The mid-positioned grouser 30 will bear considerable Weight of the tractor and facilitate this clearing action. The trailing grouser 31, on account of the curved faces 12 and 13, pulls out of the soil without lifting clods and allows the surface of the ground to fall backwardly into the hole dug by the grouser lugs with comparatively little disturbance to the soil. Hence a tractor equipped with my grousers does not form deep furrows throwing the soil to one side as is one of the difiiculties experienced with many types of grousers.

It will be apparent that the particular form of grouser lugs may be materially changed to suit different types of tractors used, and that the cleat or the equivalent may be cast integral with the rouser. Many other modifications of the design will be apparent such as changes of the curves of the "faces, widening of the grouser lugs and so on to suit special requirements. Moreover, my grouser does not require a base 22 of great width, except to form the proper curve to the face as the lugs do not have a great levering action on the rim and therefore do not break sections out as is sometimes a common occurrence with grousers attached directly to the rims ot' tractor Wheels. I

In Fig. 5, the grousers 35 and are in the form of double lugs without any connecting Web and each are separately bolted to the. upstanding flange 5 of the cleats '2. These lugs have the same characteristic as those shown in the other illustrations having the working faces substantially square to the direction of rotation of the wheel and with the back faces at an angle to conform with the diagonal position of the cleats on the rim of;

bear directly on the periphery of a wheel, a

Web of less height than the lugs connecting the lugs, the back of the lugs and the web forming substantially a plain surface and means to attach the grouser to a tractor wheel.

3. A grou-s'er as claimed in claim 2, in which the face of each lug is formed at an angle to the face oi the web, adapting said fa-ce to be substantially crosswise of a tractor I wheel with the web at an angle thereto,

4. A grouser as claimed in claim 9, in which the lugs have a base adapted to contact with a tractor wheel rim, a somewhat sharpened penetrating edge and a coacaved curve between the tip of the base and the cutting edge on the face of the lugs.

5. A tractor wheel having in combination a Wheel rim, an angular cleat attached thereto, a grouser bolted to the cleat, said grouser having a plurality of lugs extending ont- Wardly beyond the cleat, the lugs having a base restin on the rim of the Wheel, a Web connecting the lugs, the web beingsubstantially of the same height as the cleat.

6. A tractor wheel as claii'ned in claim '5, in which the lugs have a pair of recesses adapted to engage the heads of bolts, said lugs being formed With faces angifilarly positioned in regard to the web.

7. A tractor Wheel as claimed in claim 5, in which the bases of the lugs are of considerable extent along the rim of the wheel and the penetrating edge of each lug forms a cutting edge, the face of each'lug having a conc'aved curve from its cutting edge to the tip of its base. I

8. A tractor wheel as claimed in claim 5, the grouse'r lugs having faces 'at an angle to the web adapted to be substantially at right angles to the rim, a recess in the face of one of the lugs to engil'ge a bolt head and a recess in the end wall of the other lug to engage a second bolt head. I

9. A tractor wheel having in combination a wheel rim, a cleat attached thereto having a face extending diagonally across the wheel rim, a rouser h ving a pai f lugs connected by a web, the back of the lugs and tire back of the web being in substantiallythe same plane and fitting against the cjleat, lug-s having bases resting on and extending partially along the face of the rim, the lugs extending outwardly from the rim a greater distance than the deal; and the web,.the front faces of the lugs extending square aeross the wheel rim and means to fasten the greu'ser' to the c leat.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification.

ROE niwirnvs. 

